


Are You Sure?

by thoughshebebbutlitle



Category: Captain America (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-15
Updated: 2018-10-15
Packaged: 2019-08-02 18:22:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,012
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16310336
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thoughshebebbutlitle/pseuds/thoughshebebbutlitle
Summary: “Is Our National Hero Being Led Astray by National Disgrace?”The picture below is a blurry shot of the two of them at Stark’s Christmas Party the week before being very cosy with each other. So cosy in fact, that you would have to be stupid to not assume the pair were not involved in some way.





	Are You Sure?

The magazine lands on the table in front of him with a thunk, coffee spilling over the sides of his mug at the disturbance as he glances up at Maria’s scowl ridden face. It is not a foreign expression for her, but not one he is used to seeing directed at him so early in the morning.

“Hi?” He questions innocently, channelling his best puppy-dog eyes as he looks up at her. 

Her response is an unamused lift of an eyebrow and a finger jabbed angrily at the offending magazine. When he takes a proper look at the cover story he understands her anger, his brow furrowing at the headline as he reads it out loud.

“Is Our National Hero Being Led Astray by National Disgrace?” 

The picture below is a blurry shot of the two of them at Stark’s Christmas Party the week before being very cosy with each other. So cosy in fact, that you would have to be stupid to not assume the pair were not involved in some way.

“Is there – “ he starts, but she cuts him off, already knowing his question.

“There’s a whole double spread on my inadequacies and how you deserve better on page 5. And a list people you would look cute with on page 7 - oh, and a quote from Stark.” 

He flips to the article, skim reading with a grimace before discarding the gossip rag and pulling Maria down to the seat next to him. Her face shifts from a scowl to a pout that he cannot help but find adorable. 

“Maria.”

She gives him a look at that, the kind of look that says ‘nothing that you say can make this better’ which he knows, but presses on anyway, his hand resting against her thigh in that casualness that he can’t take for granted.

“I don’t care, and I know you don’t either, not really; you’ve never listened to them before.”

She sighs at that. It is true, after New York the press had written a seemingly infinite number of articles slamming her, her involvement with S.H.I.E.L.D. and its mysterious director, none of which particularly bothered her. It’s an unavoidable part of her job, and the people who need to respect her do. Who cared what the gossip loving public thought about her? But now…

“I know,” she whispered, uncharacteristably unable to raise her voice any louder, despite her best efforts, “It’s just that, we agreed that this,“ she gestures between them, “would just be us.”

He nods, they had agreed that, though reluctantly on his part. But a glance down at the magazine and the image of the two of them in a passionate embrace leaves him with the memory that brings a smile to his face.

“I think that plan failed when we started making out in the middle of parties.”

The look she gives him is one he knows surprisingly well. It’s her ‘are you serious?’ face, one that he quite enjoys seeing – the way her eyes narrow is somehow very amusing to him and just makes his grin grow wider. 

She shakes her head at his face but says nothing, burrowing into his side and hiding her face from him. He chuckles as he winds his arm round her shoulders, taking heart in her willingness to find comfort in him. 

“What do you want to do about it?” He whispers as he places a gentle kiss against her hair. Its smell is nothing flowery for neither is she, it just smells clean and like her and he wouldn’t ask for anything else. He feels her shrug against his side.

“I’m not sure, what is there to do accept to just take it?”

He considers it, it’s what they’ve always done before. Don’t take it to heart, they don’t know you and you should just brush it off. But for some reason that doesn’t feel adequate any more, but she may be right, what else is there to do?

“We could go public.” 

It’s not what he was expecting her to say at all, in fact he wasn’t expecting her to say much about it at all. 

“What?” he says, his brow furrowing in confusion. 

“We could not keep this-" she indicates between the two of them "-a secret anymore." 

He shifts round so that they are facing each other more.

“But that wouldn’t change anything, they would still write awful stuff about you and me. It would only add fuel to the flame.”

She shrugs her shoulders, as if weighing up the outcomes.

“But we wouldn’t have to lie anymore.”

He gives her a look, “You used to work in the intelligence industry Maria, most of your job was lying.”

“I know,” she rushes to explain, “but I’m not a S.H.E.I.L.D agent any more, and maybe I’m sick of all the lying and secrets. Maybe I just want to be able to be with my boyfriend without being worried what some gossip rag might say to give us away.”

He smiles at her softly, “That wouldn’t stop, you know.”

“I know, but I think I wouldn’t care quite so much about it if I wasn’t trying to keep it a secret.”

He pulls her back into his arms and smiles into her hair.

“Only if you’re sure?” She takes a deep breath in and nods.

“I’m sure. I want all the girls to know Captain America is taken,” she jokes, pushing back a lock of dark hair that has fallen onto her forehead and sitting up in confidence of her choice. 

“Yeah,” he teases and he rests his forehead against hers, “I’m sure the fan club will get the message to back off.”

“Oh, you know I could take them all down,” she whispers with false menace as she leans into his kiss. 

\----------------------------------

It only takes a week for it to get out that Captain America has a pretty serious girlfriend. It only takes a year after that for her to become Captain America's pretty serious wife.

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't written anything in ages, but I found this half finished thing and with a burst of creativity finished it! Hope you enjoyed it, let me know if you did.


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